


Paws and Claws

by krazieLeylines



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Ashen Romance | Auspistice, Flushed Romance | Matesprits, Multi, Pale Romance | Moirallegiance, Petstuck
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-01-09
Updated: 2015-06-11
Packaged: 2018-03-06 19:29:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,757
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3145907
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/krazieLeylines/pseuds/krazieLeylines
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This story is basically a bunch of one-shots of my petstuck au where twins John and Jade get a pet troll (Karkat) for Christmas, and slowly they meet friends who also own their own trolls. This may eventually lead to an actual plot about where trolls come from and such, but that depends on how dedicated I am to making it happen.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. brief prologue to set up the story

Ahhh, trolls. Ever since the mysterious spaceship crash of 1983, leaving a plethora of alien eggs behind, these strange creatures later deemed ‘trolls’ (coined by famous comedian/adventurer Sassacre for their uncanny resemblance of the popular children toys of the same name) became a popular exotic pet for aristocrats and celebrities alike. Being the most intelligent non-human species yet discovered, soon the world was flooded with experts writing books on the aliens, their habits, their diets, and the best ways to domesticate them.

Each troll was almost entirely identical at birth, appearing as large caterpillars with thick black fur on every inch of them but their face, strangely vibrant colored horns, and six little insect feet. As no troll forbearers ever stick around to raise their young, the grubs latch onto whatever closest animal species they can find, adopting that species’ habits and sounds. Most intriguing of all, they would spin their own cocoon after two years of living, and emerge months later with an entirely different shape. Two limbs missing, their fur coat turned gray for everywhere except a black mane around their head and neck, and a variety of characteristics seemingly stolen from their adopted parents. 

Such an ingenious and strange method of evolution enthralled, and continues to enthrall, people all over the world. The mystery behind their coming to Earth, their history as pets on other planets, and the many other facts still unknown of their species all make trolls the very best in exotic pets.

When Joshua Egbert learned that his own mother had received one of these expensive pets as a gift from her often absent nomadic husband, he wasn’t sure what to think. Apparently Grandpa Harley had come across a young troll living amongst a herd of goats during one of his visits to Turkey, and had it shipped to his wife straight away. 

“His name is Gamzee,” Nana, Joshua’s mother had exclaimed over the phone when she told him the news, “That’s what Jake told me, anyway. Apparently that is what the townsfolk named him, after the dimples in his cheeks, you see. Oh, but he is darling!”

She made the mistake of inviting Mr. Egbert over with his four year old children to meet the new member of the Egbert family, and his twin children, Jade and John, fell instantly and entirely in love.

“Can we get a troll, daddy?” Dad Egbert heard the question at least once every other day for the first month or so, if they weren’t begging him to drive them to their Nana’s so they could play with Gamzee once more. Of course they didn’t listen to reason: it didn’t matter how expensive and completely out of his price range trolls were, the kids still wanted one of their own.

Finally, in an effort to compromise, Joshua finally gave in and purchased a puppy for his kids for their fifth birthday. Jade was especially happy, and named the fluffy German Shepherd Becquerel, and the requests for a troll pet finally ceased.

And yet, no less than eight months later when Grandpa flew back home to visit them for Christmas, he brought them the ultimate gift.

“Oh, no,” Joshua had said when Grandpa brought the large crate into the living room, “Jake, please tell me you didn’t—” 

Before he could finish his statement, Grandpa shouted, “Surprise!” and threw back the blanket covering up the front so that John and Jade could see the fuzzy troll curled up in the back of the crate, squinting to try to get used to the light.

Of course, John and Jade went hysterical.

“Did you know about this?” Dad Egbert asked his mother, turning to her and whispering, not wishing to upset his children quite yet.

Nana laughed softly, but shook her head in a definite negative. “Hoo hoo, I hadn’t even a hint as to this happening,” she said as she pet Gamzee’s floppy ears back, holding onto him tightly to keep him from squirming on her lap. He appeared to be a mix of curious and apprehensive about their new guest, as he sniffed the air cautiously. 

Dad Egbert racked his brain, trying to figure out the most polite way to turn his stepfather down. They simply could not afford to care for this little troll, he knew.

“Does he have a name?” Jade finally asked once she was done wordlessly cooing over the troll, who seemed determined to stay as far away from the loud children as possible. She reached her hand through the bar, to her father’s dismay, so he warned her to keep her hands to herself.

“His name is Karkat,” Grandpa told the kids, after assuring Joshua that Karkat was perfectly harmless, “it means ‘the crab’. As you can guess, he was raised by them, right on the beach! He won’t hurt a soul as long as they don’t try to hurt him first, but be careful if you decide to handle him— he’s a pincher!”

Despite Joshua’s protests to the contrary, soon the crate door was opened and Grandpa was fishing Karkat out. The moment he got his hands on Karkat’s waist, the little beast went berserk with hisses and screeches, shrill sounds that hurt to hear.

Again, everyone but Joshua seemed undeterred by Karkat’s warning sounds, and Grandpa even chuckled. “Ha! Told you,” he said as Karkat pinched at Grandpa’s arms in an attempt to be released.

Gamzee, at that point, launched himself off Nana’s lap to run for cover, but still the twins sat there with their arms open.

“Fix this!” Dad Egbert whisper-demanded from his mother, but she had already took off to go hunt for Gamzee.

Seeing no other way to reason with Grandpa, Joshua stepped between him and the kids, hoping to show him how serious he was about not bringing wild animals home to drop into his kids’ laps. Instead of accomplishing this, Joshua just ended up with an armful of Karkat himself, who spit at him angrily, and oh…

Karkat’s pinches didn’t hurt at all. Joshua blinked as he held the troll child against his chest, realizing all at once that this poor guy was far too thin and young to be able to do any real harm. His claws were sharp, perhaps, but he didn’t even try to make any real use of them. Instead he just kept squeezing his fingers over Joshua’s skin, in some desperate attempt to protect himself.

“I’m not going to hurt you,” Dad promised, suddenly hit with a wave of sympathy. He pet the troll’s frazzled mane back, and rocked him back and forth like he did with his children when they couldn’t sleep.

In a matter of seconds, Karkat went from a blurry rage ball of shrieking and pinching fingers to a limp fuzzy boy with large yellow eyes and the most innocently curious stare Joshua had seen. “See, you’re safe,” Joshua added in a softer tone, and he sat down cross-legged so his children could huddle closer and see. 

“Be gentle,” he advised John and Jade as they began to pet Karkat, “He’s just a little scared is all.” 

It didn’t stop them from cooing loudly again, but aside from a few nervous ear twitches, Karkat didn’t hiss or shriek again, but remained curled up against Joshua’s chest as John and Jade rubbed their hands over his fur and mane and the baby fat around his stomach. 

And then, strangely enough, Karkat began to rumble and vibrate, and his throat emitted a strange clicking noise not unsimilar to a cat’s purr. It was not a noise that they had ever heard from Gamzee, and not one that Dad Egbert even knew trolls were capable of making. Again John and Jade ‘awww’ed, but soon they fell strangely silent, listening to Karkat’s soothing purring.

“Daaaaaaaaaad,” John finally spoke up after a minute or two of nothing but the pleasant white noise coming from the troll, and his father knew exactly what he was going to ask, but let his son ask anyway. “Can we please keep Karkat?”

Joshua was so sure he was going to say no, but he made the mistake of looking at Karkat again.

“…Yes, we can.”


	2. the beginning of a beautiful friendship

There were many reasons that trolls were considered exotic pets. The first was that many of them would live indefinitely, but would turn violent and feral around puberty, making them near impossible to safely keep in a domestic setting. (Most troll owners simply donated their once beloved pet turned wild animal to a troll rescue center, where they would live amongst other trolls in a zoo-like confinement.) But most trolls were docile for up to fifteen years, which meant they were a long term commitment. 

Secondly, they were expensive to keep. Joshua learned that quickly in the first couple of weeks that they kept Karkat. There weren’t many veterinarians who were qualified to take trolls, and the nearest one was a two hour drive out of town. Beyond the expensive vet bills, Karkat required a special diet of seafood and mixed greens.

The veterinarian suggested that Joshua have special food ordered and shipped to his house, and just feed Karkat tuna and lettuce leaves until it came. When the package arrived, it held two boxes. One was a frozen mix of pre-cooked meals of shredded fish and troll-friendly plants that had to be thawed to room temperature before it could be eaten. And the second box was stuffed near to bursting with snacks and treats that Karkat could enjoy between his scheduled two meals a day.

Lastly, Karkat needed to be wearing a few legally required articles as safety precautions, whenever Joshua decided to take him into public. The first was a harness and leash, which was thicker than a dog’s, and harder to break through. And then there were the tight leather gloves that Karkat had to wear to keep him from accidentally scratching anybody up with his sharp claws. Both also had to be ordered online.

It was getting to the point where Joshua was regretting his decision to keep the small troll, but his children loved Karkat so, and he knew he couldn’t back out of the commitment now that he had made it.

After all, Karkat had already made himself right at home. Half the nights he slept in John’s bed, the other half he slept in Jade’s. They always fought over who got to hold his leash when they took him out for walks, but Karkat no longer flinched when they hovered too close or spoke loudly near his large ears. 

He was quite the loud bugger himself, though. Joshua would often wake early in the morning to Karkat’s wailing, should he ever sleep in and neglect to give the troll his breakfast at the break of dawn. And he still hissed quite a bit, when John and Jade would accidently play too rough with him, or if Bec accidently ran over him in his puppish excitement. But at least Karkat had given up pinching.

And his purring, oh his purring. Or whatever it was called when Karkat made that low clicking cricket noise in the pit of his chest whenever he was happy. It was loud and it was shrill and John and Jade never, ever got over how cute they thought it was.

But even that, Joshua got used to. Karkat was clearly happy living with them. And there was no way to deny it: Karkat was part of the family now.

\--

Holiday break ended a couple days after New Year’s Eve, and it was time for Joshua’s kids to head back to kindergarten, and Joshua to head back to work. Not wanting to leave Karkat alone home by himself, he asked his mother if she could trollsit him. 

Not knowing how well it would work out, Joshua dropped Karkat off at her place on the first day, and told him to “be a good boy”. Karkat’s ears twitched at hearing Joshua speak to him, but there was no way of knowing if the troll understood what he meant. He assumed not, and gave Karkat’s hair a quick farewell ruffle before leaving.

Karkat watched as the door closed behind Joshua, and glanced back over his shoulder at the elderly woman he knew from that one night when his whole life had changed. He only came up to her knee, if he put all his weight on his front toes, but she looked friendly enough.

“Joshua told me you like tuna,” Nanna Egbert said to Karkat, but the only words he knew and recognized at that point were “Joshua” and “tuna”. But that was more than enough for Karkat to start wagging his tail quickly with excitement. “Good, good,” Nanna giggled, “I know you trolls are smarter than the average cookie. Come into the kitchen with me, and I’ll whip something special up for you.”

Karkat didn’t recognize any of those words, but he happily followed her nonetheless, the promise of tuna enticing him forward.

The kitchen Nanna had was quite a bit bigger than Joshua’s, and filled with the aroma of cinnamon. Two pies were cooling off on the counter, and a mischievous goat troll was stretching out his torso trying to reach one.

“Gamzee!”

The troll startled at his name, and fell backwards onto his bottom with a loud bleating sound. It took a moment for Karkat to recognize the other troll as the one who had run and hid from him before. 

Gamzee recognized Karkat at the same time, and immediately leaped up and bolted from the kitchen and down the hall.

“Oh, Gamzee,” Nanna clicked her tongue in amusement. “He’s such a skittish little boy, but I’m sure the two of you will be great friends once he gets used to having you around.” 

Her words meant nothing to Karkat, who was also captivated by the smell of pie, and was sniffing at the air to figure out the flavor.

Nanna went to the cupboard, and took out a can of tuna to prepare a nice little snack for him. She mixed some mayo into the can and spooned it out onto a bowl. Karkat lost interest in the pie for the moment as the scent of fish hit his nostrils, and scampered over to Nanna’s legs, but she wasn’t yet finished.

“I make all of Gamzee’s meals from scratch,” Nanna told Karkat proudly, although she was mostly just talking to herself, “Of course, Gamzee’s diet is not nearly as limiting as yours. He’ll eat any sort of oats, grains, wheat, and of course, lots of vegetables.” As she spoke, she took out a package of mushrooms and poured them into a frying pan over the stove.

Perhaps Gamzee’s ears were burning, for his muzzle was poking into the kitchen from around the corner. Karkat tried to ignore the other troll, not caring about him while there was food yet to be eaten, and made a small whine hoping it would convince Nanna to hurry up.

But the elderly woman just would not hurry. Karkat was beginning to get bored, watching as Nanna poured some green sauce into the pan with the mushrooms that smelled heavily of basil. 

Gamzee began inching into the room, and Karkat finally spared him a half-hearted glance. It was his first time seeing Gamzee out in the open. Gamzee was a tad taller than he was, with some pale gray spots over the thicker, darker fur covering his legs, and similarly colored marking on his muzzle and around his eyes. Nanna had dressed Gamzee in a simple pair of red shorts and a shirt with a cartoon apron on it. If Karkat had been able to read, he would have seen it said “kiss the cook” on it.

Their eyes made contact, and Karkat was sure Gamzee would flee in terror again, but he didn’t.

“ _Hey,_ ” Gamzee said, in the trollish tongue, and Karkat was immediately slapped in the face with shock when he realized that he could understand the other troll.

Karkat had understood most of the Indian words that people had spoken back where he had been born, and was struggling to understand what language his new family spoke, but he had never considered that his species had its own language, or that he’d ever learn it if there was one. But there was no need to learn it, for it was a part of his specie’s collective conscious, and therefore, a part of him. 

“ _Hey,_ ” Karkat replied back, mimicking the same clicking sound that Gamzee had used in greeting. 

There was a long silence. Karkat’s whole world had opened up beyond what he ever could have imagined, and he had no idea how to adequately express it. “ _You can understand me,_ ” Karkat said, speaking the words as though he had been speaking all his life.

“ _Well, of course._ ” Gamzee looked baffled for a second, “ _Have you never done talked with another troll before?_ ”

“ _Of course not,_ ” Karkat snapped, feeling defensive and kind of left out, “ _I’ve never met another before now! It’s not like we’re a very large bunch, are we?_ ” As soon as he asked, Karkat began to wonder. Were trolls more common than he thought, and he had just been kept from them all his life?

But Gamzee laughed, and shook his head. “ _That’s true,_ ” he agreed with Karkat, “ _There ain’t many of us on this planet, but I knew one or two when I was real young. Though… they mostly just tried to eat me._ ”

“ _Tried to… eat you?_ ” Well, now Karkat was feeling grateful that he lived amongst humans, and not other trolls.

“ _Yeah… Speaking of eatin’, you might as well take a seat! Nanna takes her time when she’s cookin’. But it’s worth the wait._ ” Gamzee was smiling now, and he climbed up onto a seat as though demonstrating the concept to Karkat.

“ _I know how to use chairs, I’m not stupid,_ ” Karkat grumbled, showing Gamzee his chair climbing prowess by taking a seat next to him.

Gamzee pouted, as if hurt. “ _Never called you stupid._ ”

“And, done!” Nanna interrupted the trolls’ conversation, placing a bowl in front of Karkat. He wasn’t sure what to make of the strange little green specks and purplish cubes mixed up in the tuna at first, but he was hungry, and it smelled good, so he happily took the spoon she offered him, and took a bite.

Deliciousness erupted in Karkat’s mouth, between the pesto and diced sautéed onions, adding another dimension of flavor to the tuna. It was like nothing Joshua had fed him, and he fell in love instantly.

“Eat it all up,” Nanna encouraged Karkat, “And I may let you sneak a bite or two of my fresh pumpkin pie.”

“ _She’s offering you her sweet smelling dessert,_ ” Gamzee translated for her, trying to be helpful, “ _if you finish your lunch, I mean._ ”

That wasn’t a problem for Karkat. He didn’t even pause to answer, enjoying his meal with gusto. While Gamzee waited, Nanna brought him a bowl of homemade chex mix to snack on.

“Hoo hoo hoo,” Nanna giggled as she watched the boys enjoy their food, “Maybe I’ll make tuna stuffed mushrooms for you next time, Karkat, maybe with some soy-based cheese sauce. You’ll be sure to enjoy that.” She took the seat across the table from them, mostly musing to herself. “I should make a book chock full of troll-safe meal recipes, with each chapter focusing on a specific subspecies of troll.”

Karkat and Gamzee didn’t understand her, of course, but Gamzee pretended to listen anyhow. Karkat only perked back up once he was finished eating, and wanted some pumpkin pie.

Laughing at his enthusiasm, Nanna reached her arm over the table to stroke one of Karkat’s ears. “I don’t imagine Joshua lets you indulge in sweets,” she cooed, “so this will be a little secret just between the two of us.”

She got up to go gather a small sliver of cake for the trolls to share, and Karkat watched her with obvious anticipation.

“ _Ugh, do we have to share like dumb little kids?_ ” Karkat complained once Nanna placed a single plate in front of them, and made no move to fetch another for Gamzee.

“ _Well, we are kind of little, and also, kids,_ ” Gamzee pointed out, unperturbed.

Karkat gave a frustrated huffy sound, but took one of the two spoons Nanna had placed on the table and decided not to complain again. Gamzee was already digging into the pie, and he didn’t want an uneven share. So he scooped up as much as he could onto his small little spoon, and shoved the warm pie into his mouth.

It was the most wonderful thing that Karkat had ever eaten, and he trilled between bites to let Nanna know what a great cook she was. But Karkat was eating fairly quickly, and soon there was only a little left on the small plate.

Gamzee pushed it over to Karkat, and let him know that the rest was his to finish.

“ _Are you sure?_ ” Karkat was taken aback by Gamzee’s act of kindness. If Gamzee was right, and other trolls were into the habit of trying to eat one another, why was Gamzee so friendly?

“ _Sure! I eat this all the time, and I can see you like it a lot._ ”

That was true, Karkat supposed. He glanced down at the plate. He really, really wanted to eat it all, but he was sure he’d be haunted by guilt afterwards. He sighed, and used his spoon to cut the remaining pie in half. “ _Come on. Let’s share the last bite. Like dumb little kids._ ”

Gamzee beamed like Karkat had just given him the best compliment that had ever been given.

“ _You’re pretty nice for being such a grump and all,_ ”, he said.

“ _Just finish your half before I eat it for you,_ ” Karkat replied, ears starting to burn with the blood rushing to his face. 

Gamzee hummed, happily eating the last bit of pie. When it was gone, Nanna grabbed it and took it off to the dish washer. Gamzee, meanwhile, slumped against Karkat’s side.

“ _Y’know, I thought you were scary at first._ ” 

“ _Oh? I hadn’t noticed._ ” Karkat shifted a bit, unused to contact with anyone of his own species, and Gamzee took that as a clue to start snuggling closer.

When Nanna turned back around, she "awed” at the sight before her. “Looks like the two of you became fast friends, oh hoo hoo!”


End file.
